Refuge for Men has moved its entire operation into the second level of 1607 W. Main St. (Photos courtesy of Refuge for Men)
A Fan barber shop has shaved down its studio space, opening the door for a Westover Hills salon to move in downstairs temporarily.
Refuge for Men, a barber shop at 1607 W. Main St., moved its entire operation to the upper level of the building last month. Previously, it leased space on both floors of the building.
Dot Reid owns Refuge for Men.
Barber shop owner Dot Reid said the decision to downsize was caused by a drop off in staff during the pandemic, when many of her barbers decided to change careers.
“After the COVID stuff happened, I had a lot of my barbers transition to different industries because of the benefits folks were receiving from the government with the pandemic,” Reid said. “So, it made sense to me to move upstairs.”
Taking over downstairs is Hair Motif, which is temporarily relocating from 5063 Forest Hill Ave. in the Westover Place shopping center as the aging strip center is redeveloped into a mixed-use project.
Hair Motif owner Elizabeth Sessler said she’ll begin operating out of the 1,300-square-foot first floor portion of the Refuge for Men building starting in early April and expects to be there for 15 months before moving back into the redeveloped Westover project.
The salon opened at Westover Place in July 2020.
Sessler, who has more than 20 years of experience in the industry, said she’s seen a divergence among her customers during the pandemic. Some want their hair to look as neat as possible while others who spend more time at home spend less time at the salon than they might have pre-pandemic.
Elizabeth Sessler is the owner of Hair Motif. (Courtesy of Hair Motif)
“As time goes on and more people are used to living with COVID, I think a certain percentage are coming back to the hair salon,” she said.
Reid, meanwhile, said business at Refuge for Men has been steady of late and she’s now up to six barbers, down from more than 20 barbers pre-pandemic.
In rebuilding her roster, Reid said, fostering a pleasant work environment and barbers’ creativity were key to maintaining staffing.
“When it comes to the retention piece, I believe that giving our staff the autonomy to be creative is way more (important) than any financial ticket I could put on it,” Reid said.
Adult haircuts start at $28 at Refuge for Men, and the barber shop also offers beard trims, hair coloring and other services. Reid said the clientele is about evenly split between VCU students and everyone else.
As for moving upstairs to a smaller space, Reid said it’s had a positive effect thus far.
“I found that it’s better for business, in all honesty, to move upstairs. From an owner’s perspective, I have more control over my employees to make sure everyone is following CDC guidelines.”
Refuge for Men moved to its current building in 2013, relocating from a Museum District space where it first opened 15 years ago.
In other Fan moves, The Pit and The Peel recently sold its building at 1210 W. Main St. for $1.4 million but continues to operate there.
Refuge for Men has moved its entire operation into the second level of 1607 W. Main St. (Photos courtesy of Refuge for Men)
A Fan barber shop has shaved down its studio space, opening the door for a Westover Hills salon to move in downstairs temporarily.
Refuge for Men, a barber shop at 1607 W. Main St., moved its entire operation to the upper level of the building last month. Previously, it leased space on both floors of the building.
Dot Reid owns Refuge for Men.
Barber shop owner Dot Reid said the decision to downsize was caused by a drop off in staff during the pandemic, when many of her barbers decided to change careers.
“After the COVID stuff happened, I had a lot of my barbers transition to different industries because of the benefits folks were receiving from the government with the pandemic,” Reid said. “So, it made sense to me to move upstairs.”
Taking over downstairs is Hair Motif, which is temporarily relocating from 5063 Forest Hill Ave. in the Westover Place shopping center as the aging strip center is redeveloped into a mixed-use project.
Hair Motif owner Elizabeth Sessler said she’ll begin operating out of the 1,300-square-foot first floor portion of the Refuge for Men building starting in early April and expects to be there for 15 months before moving back into the redeveloped Westover project.
The salon opened at Westover Place in July 2020.
Sessler, who has more than 20 years of experience in the industry, said she’s seen a divergence among her customers during the pandemic. Some want their hair to look as neat as possible while others who spend more time at home spend less time at the salon than they might have pre-pandemic.
Elizabeth Sessler is the owner of Hair Motif. (Courtesy of Hair Motif)
“As time goes on and more people are used to living with COVID, I think a certain percentage are coming back to the hair salon,” she said.
Reid, meanwhile, said business at Refuge for Men has been steady of late and she’s now up to six barbers, down from more than 20 barbers pre-pandemic.
In rebuilding her roster, Reid said, fostering a pleasant work environment and barbers’ creativity were key to maintaining staffing.
“When it comes to the retention piece, I believe that giving our staff the autonomy to be creative is way more (important) than any financial ticket I could put on it,” Reid said.
Adult haircuts start at $28 at Refuge for Men, and the barber shop also offers beard trims, hair coloring and other services. Reid said the clientele is about evenly split between VCU students and everyone else.
As for moving upstairs to a smaller space, Reid said it’s had a positive effect thus far.
“I found that it’s better for business, in all honesty, to move upstairs. From an owner’s perspective, I have more control over my employees to make sure everyone is following CDC guidelines.”
Refuge for Men moved to its current building in 2013, relocating from a Museum District space where it first opened 15 years ago.
In other Fan moves, The Pit and The Peel recently sold its building at 1210 W. Main St. for $1.4 million but continues to operate there.